What was once a potentially awkward situation for Steve Potvin ended up solidifying his candidacy for the Tucson Roadrunners’ top coaching job.
After serving as the Roadrunners’ head coach in the 2020-21 season, Potvin agreed to step down so Jay Varady could take back his role as Tucson’s head following one a season as an Arizona Coyotes assistant.
At the time, Potvin was told the experience would help him grow as coach.
So when Varady left to be an assistant for the Detroit Red Wings, Potvin moved back up.
“It’s a part of being loyal to your organization and having the faith in the people that you’re woking for that they have the best interest for you,” Coyotes gneeral manager Bill Armstrong said Thursday at a news conference to (re)introduce Potvin as Tucson’s on-ice boss. “I think that had a lot to do with why he was the first and only candidate, because he did that for the organization.”
This is Potvin’s sixth season with Tucson and his seventh with the Coyotes organization. Last season Potvin, 47, served as Varady‘s associate head coach.
“We’re going to create a standard that is gonna get us from good to great,” Potvin said. “We’re looking forward to every challenge and we’ve got a great staff in place to meet all those challenges.”
Steve Potvin speaks during a news conference announcing him as the Tucson Roadrunners' new head coach.
Tucson won division championships in 2017-18 and 2019-20 with Potvin as an assistant. The Roadrunners have produced 20 NHL players with Potvin on the bench.
Last season, Potvin directed a power play attack that scored on a team-record 21.5% of its chances.
Potvin played professionally for 16 years. The Montreal native played for the Arizona Sundogs in Prescott Valley in his final season, 2009-10. He has lived in Arizona for over 13 years.
“Honestly, we considered it home probably two months into it,” Potvin said. “We looked up at the blue skies and understood pretty clearly that this was going to be home for the next 15 years. It’s been great for my family, they’ve enjoyed it and honestly we haven’t moved back.
“It’s been a wonderful place for our kids to grow and I appreciate the weather, I appreciate the people of Arizona, it’s been a great place for us to live.”
Roadrunners general manager John Ferguson said he “couldn’t be more pleased” with Potvin’s elevation to head coach.
“I couldn’t be happier to have him being named as the next Tucson Roadrunners head coach,” he said. “He’s done it before; now he gets to take the full reigns and move forward so welcome, again, as our head coach.”
